I received the magazine and read the article. It generally talks about a preview and gives the idea about how easily create an application and move to another platform with one way click ahead.So good for the FPC and Lazarus community.

Have you read the next entry in the FAQ? "Why are some components restricted from usage in commercial application ? "

- The LCL is LGPL (with a special added permission)so the LCL can be used for writing commercial app

An app with a form, Tbutton, TEdit is all LCL

- The IDE is GPLSo you can not compile a copy of Lazarus and sell the IDE

- SynEdit is MPL (or GPL - choice given to user)That is because it existed before Lazarus, and we need to stick with thatSo SynEdit can not be used in commercial apps or closed source (or whatever MPL / GPL say)

there are more none LCL components.For those you must check the license

I guess you are right Brian_ch. And Martin_fr is right too. In fact, the correct phrase would rather be something like "the Lazarus environnement is GPL, nevertheless you can freely create programs with it. Many components are LGPL but you must be aware that some are not"

Anyway you are correct, I did not write what I wanted to write. So 2 points to follow (both my understanding, if your lawyer says otherwise, believe him)

1) In many countries selling requires ownership or permission by owner or similar.The page you link talks about "a charge" for "redistribution" AKA "fee". That fee may indeed not be limited. But that does not make it "selling"

For that whole conflict, most big software companies do not sell you a copy of their product, but only a license to use it.Of course with the GPL, everyone gets the license itself for free.

Also, even so the GPL itself does allow a fee of any amount you like, in most countries you will have to tell people what they pay for. So even if permitted it will be hard to find people who pay, unless you deceive them to believe, that there was no cheaper/free way. Such deception of course may be seen as fraud....

2) What I meant to say:

If you modify the IDE (using the IDE code itself), or write any code that uses the IDE code:The GPL enforces, that this final product is GPL too. So you will have to make the source available and do all else the GPL requires.

(So in this case, I guess you have an ownership to the modifications, even if you are forced to put them under gpl.)

---On the other hand the LCL is LGPL (with additional permission of static linking): So if you write an app that contains LCL code (TForm, TButton, ...) you are entirely free how you wish to license